This application claims the priority of Korean Patent Application No. 2004-59511, filed on Jul. 29, 2004, in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein in its entirety by reference.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a mobile phone including a pop-up camera module, and more particularly, to a mobile phone having a pop-up camera module that protrudes from the main body of the mobile phone so as to photograph a subject.
2. Description of the Related Art
As data transmission rates increase, the sizes of LCD's decrease, and electronic circuits become increasingly integrated, mobile phones increasingly can transmit pictures as well as voice.
Conventional folder-type mobile phones are typically composed of a main body housing and a folder, with a hinge unit formed between the main body housing and the folder. The hinge unit typically comprises a main body connector and a folder connector which are rotatably interconnected by a hinge-connecting structure. Moreover, some conventional folder-type mobile phones include a camera module which is capable of rotating by 180° for focusing a subject for photographing, and which is mounted to the main body connector or to the folder connector of the hinge unit.
With typical mobile phones, a portion of the camera module must protrude a predetermined amount, in order for a user of the mobile phone to adjust the rotation angle of the camera module to an angle desired by a user. Such a protrusion of a camera module detracts from the goal of producing flat- and small-sized mobile phones. Moreover, protrusion of a camera module from a mobile phone can make the camera module more susceptible to damage from an impact, for example, if the mobile phone is dropped by a careless user. Protrusion of a camera module from a mobile phone also requires a complicated shape and design and detracts from the appearance of the phone, which has the potential to lead to consumer dissatisfaction with the phone. Moreover, the shape of the mobile phone having a protrusion thereon.